Veasna Nim
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The oh so wonderful Ms. Mollie Morrison was the absolute best! Her enthusiasm, patience and knowledge took our experience to a whole other level. My first graders could not stop talking about how much they loved her, the class and all the new things they were learning. The children were exposed to many different artists including Dale Chihuly, Britto, Wayne Thiebaud, Hundertwasser, Maurice Sendak and so many more! They learned about patterns, warm and cool colors, geometric and organic shapes and the list goes on and on. The children were given an opportunity to work with a variety of art mediums including: water colors, oil pastels, tempura and clay.
Before starting each session Ms. Mollie would start the class with a review of the last session. I was always so surprised and ecstatic to see that my students were able to retain so much information. The students that have a difficult time focusing and remembering anything in my class were the students that were participating and sharing the most! It was absolutely wonderful! The class was so sad when VSA came to an end. We all wrote thank you letters to Ms. Mollie for her fabulous work. I asked my students to share who their favorite artist was and why. It was absolutely amazing when I realized that the kids were reminding ME of all the different artists and pieces! I know that many of my students have become friends with kids from Ms. Ryan's special ed class. I see them playing with each other on the yard. Many of my students also expressed that they were sad that they would not get to do art with Ms. Ryan's class when VSA was over.
My class' overall growth through Very Special Arts has truly been amazing. I am so glad we were able to be a part of such a wonderful program and truly look forward to participating in it again in the near future!
Before starting each session Ms. Mollie would start the class with a review of the last session. I was always so surprised and ecstatic to see that my students were able to retain so much information. The students that have a difficult time focusing and remembering anything in my class were the students that were participating and sharing the most! It was absolutely wonderful! The class was so sad when VSA came to an end. We all wrote thank you letters to Ms. Mollie for her fabulous work. I asked my students to share who their favorite artist was and why. It was absolutely amazing when I realized that the kids were reminding ME of all the different artists and pieces! I know that many of my students have become friends with kids from Ms. Ryan's special ed class. I see them playing with each other on the yard. Many of my students also expressed that they were sad that they would not get to do art with Ms. Ryan's class when VSA was over.
My class' overall growth through Very Special Arts has truly been amazing. I am so glad we were able to be a part of such a wonderful program and truly look forward to participating in it again in the near future!
JIM BROWN
2nd Grade Teacher
Mark Twain Elementary School
Artist: Vinci Horiuchi – Breakdance
Much to my delight, each of the goals I set for my students regarding participation in I Can Do That!/Very Special Arts were easily attained, though it was made possible by the way our instructor, Vince, wove each lesson carefully to build on skills, physical ability, confidence, technique, cooperation, empathy for other students, and a deep understanding of the origins of break dancing.
When students struggled with difficult moves, Vince related the current project back to previous moves, which provided a bench mark for skills already mastered. He never once lost patience with our group of students, and always found a way to motivate them to do what often appeared impossible. I saw the level of self-confidence skyrocket during the weeks that we studied break dancing with Vince. My students looked forward to our weekly sessions, they practiced at home, watched Youtube videos, and could not wait to show Vince what they had accomplished. This program is amazing! Thank you! |
STACEY HOFFMAN, JOE SALONGA
Special Education Teachers
Fremont Adult School
Artist: Shawn C. Turner – Drawing & Painting
Objectives:1) To develop and enhance self-esteem, the students will be encouraged to become involved in drawing activities that encourage self expression and that support his/her interests and strengths.
This goal was met for all students with 100% accuracy. All students produced a final project with a super hero who shared at least one positive characteristic also identified in the individual student artist. 2) To develop and enhance self-esteem and language, opportunities for the student to demonstrate and express personal strengths will be maximized as often as is possible through drawing and expressive language. This could include, verbal presentations describing completed art projects and opportunities for the students to share positive drawing experiences with peers, staff and families. Goal met with 100% accuracy. Students used verbal and written language to describe positive characteristics, including verbs, adverbs and adjectives. 3) Student strengths will be highlighted by recording and sharing evidence of growth. This will include collection and comparison of art work done at the beginning and end of the VSA semester. Goal met with 100% accuracy. Students kept all work in a folder enabling all to see progression and development of super hero created. Final work displayed in community settings. |
Dear Alice,
Let me begin by saying that as a newcomer to I Can Do That, I was so impressed and pleased with the program that I am looking forward to my class participating next year. The breakdancing instructor worked so well with my students, who are severely developmentally delayed, that they were able to “do that!” The children learned so many things through this experience, such as following directions from a new teacher, locating on a calendar when we had breakdancing, and how to cheer for others, and how to take turns while dancing. My goal for my students was to simply participate in a novel activity. Not only did they accomplish that goal, but they went beyond by encouraging each other to get out there and perform their “sweet moves” for strangers. Thank you for this wonderful opportunity. Sincerely, Kristen Clark
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